There were 3 454 million hectares of forest, including some 3
221 million hectares of natural forest, throughout the world as of 1995 (FAO
1998a, 1999). It is estimated that about 48.5 percent of natural forests are
potentially available for timber harvest. Global distribution and availability
differ significantly by region. The largest aggregate area of natural forests is
in South America and Russia. The availability of natural forest for harvest is
greatest (in terms of actual area) for Russia and North America, while the share
of natural forests deemed available for harvesting within a region is the
greatest for Europe (85.1%), Russia (76.0%), Asia (56.6%) and North America
(56.0%).

Only Russia presently holds significant areas of undisturbed
natural forests (514 million ha; 77 percent) that are available for harvesting
(Figure 1). In contrast, all natural forests in Europe, North America and
Central America that are available for harvest are considered disturbed. Natural
forests in legally protected areas are unavailable for harvesting. Additional
natural forests, as defined by FAO, can also be unavailable for harvesting by
reason of:

Overall, only 290 million hectares (17.5%) of natural forests
are unavailable for harvesting under legally protected status. Asia, Russia and
South America lead in the legal designation of protected natural
forests[1] in terms of area. Some 256 million
hectares are considered as unavailable for harvesting due to physical
constraints (Category I) with the majority in South America, followed by North
America and Africa. Remoteness and lack of infrastructure (Category II) accounts
for over 365 million hectares of which about 69 percent is in South America.
Degraded and poor quality natural forests (Category III) account for over 746
million hectares or over 45 percent of natural forests not available for
harvesting, with significant amounts in Central America, Russia, Africa, South
America, Asia, Europe and North America.

2.1 Natural forests, harvests and
forest growth - a delicate balance

A large majority of timber production is harvested from
currently available natural forest. Globally, an estimated 3 354 million
m3 was removed from the worlds forests of which 56 percent is
woodfuel. Woodfuel is most significant in Asia and Africa while industrial
roundwood production was heavily concentrated in North America, Asia and
Europe.

Industrial roundwood removals illustrate the delicate
relationship between estimated growth of commercial species in the available
natural forests in comparison to industrial roundwood production (Figure 2).
While the picture may give an impression that an overall balance of harvest and
growth has been achieved, this is not so since much of the current harvesting is
not sustainable and that the productivity of degraded forests are low.

The natural forests most under pressure for harvesting,
Africa, Asia, and Oceania, are also the regions with the lowest net growth rates
from currently available natural forests. Further, these regions also are
experiencing the most severe deforestation and forest degradation (Figure
3).

2.2 Removal of natural forests from
production - recent trends

Deforestation is the most critical factor in the reduction of
natural forest area available for harvesting. An estimated 11.4 million hectares
of natural forests are deforested annually. However, the recent trend to
designate additional protected areas is also significant, removing natural
forests from the production forest base. FAO has estimated that some 290 million
hectares are now under some form of legal protection. Between 1970-1990 the
number of legally designated protected areas increased by about 140 percent,
while the gross area (including non-forest) increased from about 550 million
hectares to almost 1 200 million hectares (FAO 1998a).

[1] Legal designation as a protected area, however,
seldom assures effective protection on the ground. The actual status of such areas
may be quite good, or alternatively there may be continuing degradation and deforestation.